Au Pair: Fabiola Guadalupe Dominguez Flores from MexicoHost Family: Porpeglia family in New York

Fabiola, our family’s sixth au pair, has been a bright light and blessing to our family. For nearly 18 months, Fabiola has been the rock for our family, as she has become an indispensable family member during what was one of the most difficult years in our lives. Our two daughters’ lives have been immeasurably enriched by Fabiola’s devotion to this family.

Fabiola has met each challenge with perseverance, grace, love and compassion, poise, maturity and a delightful sense of humor. If ever there was an example of how the au pair program can work at its best, we believe it to be Fabiola’s experience.

Within days of her arrival, Fabiola quickly became part of our family, helping organize a bridal shower for our former au pair, and being part of the wedding in which our girls served as flower girls, me as a matron of honor, and my husband “in loco parentis” as father of the bride.

Fabiola’s support of our family has been unwavering. She has helped our family through multiple medical conditions: our younger daughter’s tonsillectomy; my broken arm and later sprained ankle; my younger daughter being rushed to the ER at 4 a.m. with breathing problems; my husband’s esophageal surgery; and my difficult-to-treat ectopic pregnancy from which it took months to recover.

She has been by our family’s side through the illness and death of my grandmother last January, my mother’s death only three weeks ago, and the death of my other grandmother six days later.

Fabiola has, without fail, made over 200 trips to the ice rink (and spent multiple hours at the ice rink per trip!) to support my older daughter’s dream to be a competitive ice skater. She has been our daughters’ hair stylist extraordinaire, a “special guest” visitor for our daughter’s Girl Scout troop, an active member of our daughters’ school life activities (field trips, special events, etc.), a welcome chef in our kitchen (her authentic Mexican dishes will be greatly missed by all when she leaves), and an “assistant costume maker” for Halloween and Read Across America Day.

Then, there are all the crazy family vacations (and vacation hiccups!) Fabiola has weathered gracefully: her car breaking down in the middle of a triathalon route on the way home from Lake Champlain; a cold weekend at Santa’s Workshop in Lake Placid for my daughter’s birthday last December; traveling to Colorado, and rushing back to make it in time for another former au pair’s wedding on Easter Sunday at a New Jersey nightclub; San Diego when my younger daughter acquired croup and needed steroid treatment, and my older daughter being selected for “special screening” at the airport; my being rushed away from a restaurant in Niagara Falls State Park by ambulance (Fabiola not only cared for the girls at the State Park but brought the leftovers from lunch back to the hotel!); being in Vermont for Hurricane Irene—and needing to find a new route home due to road closures; and going to NYC on Black Friday to see Mary Poppins on Broadway for our daughters’ birthdays! (Miraculously, Fabiola has also managed to travel on her own too, including to DC, Florida, Boston!)

One of the most poignant examples of Fabiola’s extraordinary character was my mother’s touching goodbye to Fabiola while she lay in hospice care only six days before her death. Fabiola’s love for my mother and my mother’s reciprocal love of Fabiola was clear to all who witnessed this special goodbye. Fabiola is also well-loved by my father, aunts, my brother, my cousins, and my best friend -- each of whom supports Fabiola’s nomination for this award! They have come to know her during multiple visits throughout the year, especially during the last few months as our home essentially served as a revolving door “hotel” for all those who came to support my mother during her final days. We were blessed to know Fabiola’s grandfather—Papanino, who was a welcome guest in our home for two weeks in September. Our children benefited from their time with their extended-family “grandfather.”

Tellingly, Fabiola was selected by Questar III BOCES as a graduation speaker for the BOCES adult programs graduation. After the ceremony, the BOCES Superintendent and her teacher praised Fabiola’s character, as well as her magnificent speech, from which I will quote. As Fabiola spoke before a sizeable audience:

“…Now I know that family is not only the people who share a last name and DNA with you, family is the people who you really love and love you, who care about you, who’s with you and support you no matter what and it doesn’t matter where are you from or what your last name is, that’s family and now I know I’ve so much family in The U.S….”

We truly could not have weathered the past year without Fabiola. No words can express the depth of our gratitude. She will forever remain in our hearts as a member of this family. We heartily implore you to recognize her as Au Pair of the Year.